Typewriting machine



Dec. 3,1935. H. A. AVERY 2,022,702

TYPEWBITING MACHINE Filed March 1, 1955 INVENTOR HENRY ALLEN AVERYATTORNEYS Patented Dec. 3, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TYPE-WRITINGMACHINE Application March 1, 1935, Serial No. 8,822

7 Claims. (Cl. 197-123) The invention relates to improvements intypewriting machines, and more particularly to means providing forconnecting and disconnecting the line space wheel and platen from eachother for fractional or irregular line-spacing, and for readily removingthe platen from and replacing it in the platen carriage when desired,and the object of the invention is to provide improved means wherebyprovision is made both for fractional 1o line-spacing and for readyremoval and replacement of the platen.

To the above and other ends which will appear from the followingdescription of the preferred embodiment of the invention, the inventioncon- 15 sists of the combinations of devices, features of construction,and arrangements of parts hereinafter set forth and particularly pointedout in the appended claims.

In the drawing:

20 Fig. 1 is a fragmentary plan view showing the platen carriage,platen, and associated devices, including the line spacing mechanism, ofthe machine;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 22 of.

25 Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 5, the platen beingomitted;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

30 Fig. 5 is a front elevation, partly broken away, showing the lefthand end of the platen and parts adjacent thereto;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view on the line 6--6 of Fig. 7; and

35 Fig. 7 is a view similar to Fig. 5 showing the platen partly removedfrom the platen carriage.

The present invention is in the nature of an improvement upon theconstructions disclosed in the patents to F. H.Armstrong, No. 1,437,215and 40 H. A. Avery, No. 1,930,918.

The cylindrical platen comprises a rigid core in having thereon theusual rubber sleeve ll. Housed within the left hand end of the rubbersleeve and abutting the left hand end of the core 45 is a sheet metalcup i2 ailixed to the core by fastening devices l3 (Fig. 6). The platencarriage comprises a base l4 and a. pair of upstanding end plates l5 andIS, the left hand end plate l5 having a cylindrical bore ll therein, andthe right 50 hand end plate l6 having therein a slot l8 which extends upand down and is open at its upper end and is contracted at its lowerend. A stationary bearing sleeve l9 has its outer end brazed orotherwise fixed to plate I5 in bore i1 and ex- 55 tends inward from saidplate. Said bearing sleeve is formed intermediate its ends with anexternal collar 20 which extends inward from the inner face of plate l5part way to the inner end of the sleeve.

The platen is rotatably journalled in the car- 5 riage by means of twostub shafts 2| and 22. Stub shaft 22 is rigidly affixed to the platen atthe right hand end of the platen for rotation as a unit with the platenand has a reduced cylindrical portion 22- journalled in the contractedlower 10 end of slot l8 in end plate It. The depth of the contractedlower end of slot l8 is equal to about one-half the diameter of portion22 To releasably hold stub shaft 22 journalled in slot Hi, there isprovided a fore-and-aft slidable latch bar 23 slidably guided on twoshouldered screws 24 threaded into end plate l6 and passing through aslot 25 in the bar. Latch bar 23 is provided at its rear end with anoperating finger piece 23 and at its front end with a finger 23 whichlightly contacts stub shaft 22 when the bar is slid forward over thestub shaft into abutting contact of a shoulder 23 on the bar with a stopscrew 26 threaded in plate I 6. When bar 23 is slid rearward as far aspermitted by screws 24 and slot 25, 25 the slot I8 is opened for liftingof stub shaft 22 out of slot I8. A finger wheel 21 is fixed on the outerend of shaft 22.

The left hand stub shaft 2| is endwisely removable from the platen andthe platen carriage and has a finger wheel 28 fixed on its outer end.Shaft 2| is axially slidable in bearing sleeve IS in which it is alsorotatably journalled to rotatably support the left hand end of theplaten. To prevent accidental withdrawal of the shaft 2|, and at thesame time permit limited axial reciprocation of the shaft for thepurpose hereinafter described, said shaft has a reduced cylindricalportion 2| between the finger wheel 28 and the end plate l5 of thecarriage, which reduced portion forms a wide annular groove in the shaftin which is normally engaged a latch lever 29. Latch 29 is pivoted at 30at the outer face of end plate l5 and is normally urged against thereduced portion 2| of shaft 2| by a spring 3| anchored to plate l5. Atits upper end the latch lever 29 is provided with a suitable actuatingfinger piece for pushing of the latch lever upward and rearward torelease shaft 2|. Preferably a retaining and stop screw 32 is providedfor latch lever 29, said screw being threaded into plate l5 andextending through a slot 33 in the latch lever adjacent the finger pieceon the lever.

The inner end portion of shaft 2| is flattened, or provided atdiametrically opposite 66 points with flat faces, as indicated at 34,this flattened end portion of the shaft having loose sliding fit in anelongated slot formed in the inner end wall of platen cup I 2. Theflattened inner end portion of shaft 2| is long enough to engage in slot35 at both limits of reciprocation of shaft 2| permitted by latch 29while the latch is engaged with the reduced cylindrical part 2| of shaft2|, so that while shaftril is latched the platen may be rotated therebyby turning the finger wheel 28. I

Rotatably journalled on the stationary bearing sleeve l9, between collar20 and the inner end of the sleeve, is the hub 36 of a toothed linespace wheel or ratchet wheel 31. A split locking ring 38 of spring wirereleasably engaged in an annular groove in sleeve l9 adjacent the innerend of the sleeve abuts the inner end of hub 36 to prevent accidentaldetachment of the line space wheel from the bearing sleeve. Hub 36extends inward from the vertical plane of the toothed-portion of theline space wheel and is provided with a narrow cylindrical intermediatereduced portion 39 and a still further reduced cylindrical inner endportion 40, the periphery of portion ,40 being preferably beveled at theinner end edge thereof as shown. Portion 39 projects slightly into, andslidably fits in, the open outer end portion of platen cup I2 and formsa support for the left hand end of the platen.

Portion 40 forms a clutch drum for use in clutching the platen to andunclutching it from the line space wheel. Coactive with the clutch drumare two clutch levers or drum-gripping levers 4| preferably formed ofsheet metal which is slightly springy or resilient. The two levers 4|are arranged at diametrically opposite points within the platen aboutthe stubshaft 2| for coaction of inwardly bent inner end portions 4 i ofthe levers with the diametrically opposite non-flattened surfaces of theflattened inner end portion of'the shaft. The main body portion or innerarm of each lever extends through a notch 35' in one end wall of slot35, there being one notch 35fin each end wall of the slot 35 in cup |2.The inner arm of each lever, within cup I2 is bent radially outward andat its outer end joins the inner end of a short outer arm of the leverwhich extends outward and overhangs the cylindrical portion of theclutch drum 39 which it is adapted to grip by means of its notched orforked outer end 4| Each lever 4| is adapted to fulcrum on the annularwall of cup I 2 at the juncture 4| of the inner and outer arms of thelever.

The two levers are detachably held in assembled relation with theplaten, for convenient separation from the ratchet wheel hub with theplaten and re-connection together with the platen as a unit with thehub, by means of a split retaining ring 42 of spring wire. Ring 42 is ofsubstantially U-shape, its arcuate portion and the ends of its armsfrictionally binding against the inner surface of the annular wall ofthe cup l2, and its arms holding the levers substantially to said wallsurface at the .junctures of the lever arms, the outer arm of each leverbeing confined between said wall surface and an arm of said retainingring at the juncture of the lever arms. Said ring 42 and the notches 35*serve effectively to hold the levers 4| in assembledrelation with theplaten during removal of the platen from, and attachment of the platento, the platen carriage, and to hold the levers and platen in assembledrelation while the platen is removed from the carriage, but permit readyremoval of the levers from, and insertion thereof in, the platen whendesired.

At its inner end the stub shaft 2|, is beveled to provide a cam portion2| thereof which is shiftable inward between and past the inner end por-5 tions 4| of levers 4| to rock the levers on their fulcrums 4| andcause the forked outer ends 4|" of the levers to grip the cylindricalsurface of clutch drum 40 to clutch the platen to the line space wheelwhen the stub shaft 2| is pushed in- 10 ward to the position shown inFig. 5. In this position of the stub shaft 2| the platen may be mtatedfor regular line spacing either by finger wheel 21, finger wheel 28, orby a suitable line space lever actuated mechanism which rotates 15 theratchet wheel. When the stub shaft 2| is pulled outward as far aspermitted by latch 23, the cam end 2| thereof is pulled outward torelease the grip of levers 4| on the clutch drum portion 40 of theline-space wheel hub, thereby 20 releasing the platen from rotation bythe line space wheel and permitting rotation of the platen by either ofthe finger wheels for irregular linespacing.

The hand-lever actuated line spacing wheel 25 operating means shown isconstructed substantially as disclosed in the patent to Averyhereinbefore referred to. It comprises a line-spacing hand-lever 43pivoted on the carriage II at 44 and connected by a. link 45 to aline-space pawl 30 carrier 45 the lower end of which is journalled onsleeve is between the collar 20 and the outer face of the line spacewheel hub 36. Ring 34 holds the pawl carrier and wheel to the collar.The pawl carrieris pivoted at 41 to a line space pawl 48 which carries aprojection 49 which rides on and off part 50 of a line space regulatorlever 5|. Lever 5| is pivoted on collar 20 of sleeve l3 and is settableto regulate the number of tooth spaces of wheel 31 through which saidwheel will be turned by pawl 48 when the line-space lever 43 isactuated, as more fully disclosed in said Avery patent. A spring 52connects pawl projection 43 to the pawl carrier to urge the nose of thepawl into engagement with the teeth of the line space ratchet wheel.

The platen, together withthe clutch levers and their retaining ring 42,may be readily removed from the carriage as a unit without disturbingthe cooperative relation of the pawl and ratchet line-space mechanism.The aforesaid removal is effected in the following manner:

Press back the pivoted latch 23 and withdraw stub shaft 2| with itsfinger wheel 23 from the platen and carriage by pulling outward on wheel55 28. Slide rearward the latch 23 to uncover the upper open end of slotl8. Grasp wheel 21 on stub shaft 22 and lift the platen diagonallyupward and slightly rightward as indicated in Fig. 7, whereupon theplaten may be readily lifted from the carriage. The wider upper portionof slot it facilitates the imparting of the slight rightward movement ofthe platen above mentioned, said portion of said slot being of a widthwhich is greater than the maximum diameter of the stub shaft 22 as shownmost clearly in Fig. 4.

A suitable spring-urged pivoted detent 53. car-. ried by plate I5, ispreferably provided for engagement with the teeth of ratchet wheel :1.

What I claim is:

1. In combination, a platen carriage having end plates, a fixed sleevecarried by one of said end plates, the other end plate having a bearingslot therein open at one end only, a plate a platen-carried stub shaftfixed to one end of the platen and journalled in the closed end of saidslot, a releasable latch carried by said slotted end plate forreleasably holdingsaid platen-carried stub shaft from lifting out ofsaid slot, a second stub shaft axially .shiftable through said sleeveand axially withdrawable from the sleeve and carriage, a-releasablelatch for holding said second stub shaft for limited reciprocationof theshaft in the sleeve, a line space ratchet wheel rotatively mounted onsaid fixed sleeve, and separably engageable clutch means carried in partby said wheel and in part by the adjacent end of said platen andoperable by said limited reciprocation of said second stub-shaft toclutch said platen to said wheel and unclutch the platen from saidwheel.

2. In combination, a platen carriage having end members and a fixedbearing sleeve carried by and extending through one of its end members,the other end member having a bearing slot therein closed atone end andopen at the opposite end of the slot, a roller platen, a platencarriedstub shaft fixed to one end of the platen and journalled in the closedend of said slot, a releasable latch carried by said slotted endmemherfor releasably holding the platen-carried stub shaft from lifting out ofsaid slot, a second stub shaft extending slidably through said sleeveand axially withdrawable therefrom, a releasable latch carried by thesleeve-carrying end member and coactive with the second stub shaft toprevent axial withdrawal of said stub shaft from the sleeve and permitlimited axial reciprocation of said stub shaft while the latter extendsthrough the sleeve, said second stub shaft having an inner end portionslidably and non-rotatably telescoped with the platen and axiallyseparable from the platen and provided with cam means at its inner end,a line space ratchet wheel rotatively mounted on said sleeve and heldagainst axial movement on the sleeve, a handlever-operated pawlmechanism carried by said sleeve and the sleeve-carrying end member forrotating said ratchet wheel, and separably engageable clutch meanscarried in part by said sleeve-carrying end member and sleeve and inpart by the adjacent end of the platen and operable to clutch andunclutch the platen and wheel by said cam means provided on the secondshaft upon reciprocation of said second shaft within the limitspermitted by said second-mentioned latch.

33. In combination, a platen carriage, a roller platen, a pair of stubshafts removably :lournalled in the platen carriage to rotate about acommon axis and rotatably supporting the platen, one of said shaftsbeing fixed to the platen and the second being axially withdrawable fromthe platen and carriage, releasable means preventing accidental removalof the first shaft from the carriage, releasable means permittinglimited axial reciprocation of the second shaft in the platen andcarriage and releasable to permit axial withdrawal of the second shaftfrom the platen and carriage, a line space ratchet wheel rotativelycarried by the carriage to rotate about an axis coincident with thecommon axis of the shafts,

means carried by the carriage to rotate the ratchet wheel, and clutchmeans carried in part by the ratchet wheel and in part by the platen andoperable by said limited reciprocation of the second shaft to clutch andunclutch the 5 platen and wheel, said separably carried parts of theclutch means being separably associated with each other.

4. A typewriting machine having, in combination, a platen carriage, aroller platen, a pair of 10 platen journalling stub shafts detachablyjournalled on the carriage, a platenrotating pawland-ratchet mechanismmounted on the carriage independently of the platen, and separableclutch means mounted in part on the ratchet of the 15 pawl-and-ratchetmechanism and in part on the roller platen for clutching the platen toand unclutching it from the said ratchet, one of said stub shafts beingaxially reciprocable in thecarriage to actuate said clutch means and"being 20 also axially withdrawable from the carriage to permitdetachment of the platen fromthe carriage when the other shaft isdetached from the carriage, said other shaft being fixed to the platen,means detachably holding the axially 5 shiftable shaft journalled in thecarriage and permitting limited reciprocation of said shaft in thecarriage to actuate said clutch means, and means detachably holding theother-shaft journalled in the carriage.

5. A typewriting machine according to claim 4, wherein the ratchet isheld rotatively journailed on a fixed sleeve element of the carriage bya split spring ring detachably engaged in an annular groove in saidsleeve element, and that 5 part of the clutch means carried by theplaten is detachably held to the platen by a split spring ring, saidrings holding the respective parts of the clutch means to the carriageand platen when the platen is removed from the carriage.

6. In combination, a platen carriage, a roller platen having journalsremovably mounted in the carriage, a line space wheel and clutch elementiournalled on the carriage to rotate as a unit, and means for grippingsaid clutch element car- 5 ried by the platen and removable with theplaten from the carriage, said means being operable by axialreciprocation of a stub shaft forming one of said journals of theplaten, said carriage having a bearing for said shaft in which saidshaft 50 is reciprocable axially and from which the shaft is axiallywithdrawable.

7. In combination, a platen carriage, a roller platen having. journalsremovably mounted in the carriage, a line space wheel and clutch ele- 55ment Journalled on the carriage to rotate as a unit, means for grippingsaid clutch element carried by the platen and-removable with the platenfrom the carriage, said means being operable by axial reciprocation of astub shaft forming one 50 of said Journals of the platen, said carriagehaving a bearing for said shaft in which said shaft is reciprocableaxially and from which the'shaft is axially withdrawable, and means forpreventing accidental withdrawal of the platen journals from thecarriage.

HENRY ALLEN AVERY.

